Death of Kerala youth during reel shooting: Driver of luxury car arrested based on visual evidence

There were attempts on the part of the suspect to mislead the investigation team by providing wrong information about the vehicle that actually caused the accident death on Kozhikode beach road

The Vellayil police on Wednesday (December 11, 2024) arrested K. Sabith Rahman, a Manjeri native, who allegedly drove the luxury car that knocked down a 20-year old youth during a promotional video shoot for a Pantheerankavu-based automotive firm on the Kozhikode beach road in Kerala on Tuesday (December 10).

Police sources said the suspect misled the investigation team by providing wrong information about the vehicle that actually caused the accident death. His initial statement was that Vadakara native T. K. Alvin was knocked down by a Land Rover Defender brought to the spot for the promotional reel shooting. The claim was found to be false in the detailed examination of CCTV visuals from the spot.

“The accident was caused by a G-Class Mercedes Benz car which had no valid insurance. To hide the same, the suspect was giving the details of the other SUV used for shooting at the site. We cracked the fabricated story after retrieving the original visuals from Alvin’s mobile phone and based on the site inspection report of the Motor Vehicles Department (MVD),” said a senior police officer who was part of the investigation.

He said the attempt of the suspect was to escape from the individual responsibilities to pay off the compensations and project another vehicle which had proper insurance coverage.

Both Sabith Rahman and another driver, Mohammad Rabees, who reportedly drove the Land Rover Defender, were in police custody for detailed interrogation after the tragic accident near the Vellayil police station at 7. 30 a.m. on Tuesday.

According to police, the accident occurred while Alvin was shooting a car chase for the promotional reel on his mobile phone alongside the median on the beach road near Vellayil. It was following the reckless overtaking attempt by Sabith Rahman that led to the accident. The 20-year old who sustained grave injuries after being knocked down by the SUV was declared dead at a private hospital in Kozhikode city by noon.

The police had already booked the suspect under Sections 281 (rash driving or riding on a public way) and 106 (causing death by negligence) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Another case was also registered against the owner and driver of the Land Rover Defender which had carried a temporary number even after the allotment of the official vehicle registration number.

Motor Vehicles department (MVD) enforcement squad members said the licence of the suspect would be suspended in the wake of the latest incident. As there were grave safety rule violations on the part of the two drivers during the reel shooting, the cancellation of the impounded vehicles’ registrations was also under consideration, they added.

Alvin, a young professional in promotional video content creation for social media, was working in the United Arab Emirates till recently. He returned home a few months ago for some follow-up health check-up related to renal ailment. It was a fatal injury to head following the accident that claimed his life.

Published - December 11, 2024 03:30 pm IST